Because he's needed
by Baldore
Summary: Peter Parker reflects on his decisions after a particularly hard night and has to decide whether it's worth staying the masked wall-crawler. (One-shot)


Disclaimer; I do not own Spider-man/Peter Parker or any characters.

Peter Parker swung into his bedroom through an open window. Even in his injured shape he tried not to wake his aunt. He landed softly in his room and tore up what was left of his ruined mask. Which wasn't much. The red with white material peeled right off and was thrown on the floor.

His night had sucked, plain and simple. It was not a good night. Anything that could go wrong, pretty much did. He had to blow off another date with Gwen and a chance to help Dr. Conners (this name came out miss spelled in word so you might want to check it.) with an important lab experiment concerning Lizard DNA. So they most likely thought he was a complete jerk. And he wasn't sure if that was wrong. He was becoming increasingly unreliable with all the so-called super-villains seemingly coming out of the woodwork these days.

Every single time he'd think it was safe to agree to a date or an experiment or even a day with Harry something would come up. From maniacal scientist to bloodthirsty mercenaries or some random crook with a grudge he'd have to blow off whatever he had planned, yet again. The brown haired teen hated it.

To make matters worse, he had nearly died at Doctor Octopus' hands. The crazed doctor had also put a mass of helpless civilians in danger. The night had been a heap of complete and utter chaos. Peter had only barely managed to put Octavius in jail. But the civilians...no one had died, luckily, but Peter would never forget the looks of terror in their eyes. And Octavius had even discovered Spider-mans secret identity after ripping off most of Peter's mask and recognizing the teen before finally being thrown in jail. That meant he knew who Spider-man really was. And next time could go after the people Parker cared about.

All the super-villains going around made Peter wonder. There hadn't been any before he took up crime fighting. Now, they seemed almost a weekly event. Daily sometimes. Did his presence as the masked vigilante cause them?

So far, Spider-man had managed to stop their plots, save the civilians and put the villains behind bars. But happened when he failed? When he wasn't good enough? When his best effort just didn't get the job done? What would happen then?

He also gained some new scars. Some from fighting and others from saving the civilians, the wounds ranged from bruises, cuts to deep bleeding gashes. His suit provided next to zero protection. Speaking of which, Peter tore of his ruined shirt and began bandaging his multitude of wounds. This proved difficult, since the wall crawler's hand was busted also. He had to web it up from the pain and just hoped it wasn't broken.

And to top it all off, J.J. Jameson was on another anti-Spider-man rant. Not that he was ever off of one. It was like a broken record, an annoying record. The man had even now offered a reward for the "masked menace that is Spider-man". It was quite a pretty penny too. So now every hired gun and even most civilians were trying to capture his masked alter ego. Gotta love New York. Offer some money and people will do almost anything. Heck, even Peter was tempted to turn himself in for the money.

Speaking of money, Peter was running low on that too. Even with Jameson desperate for pictures of Spider-man he still wasn't getting what his pictures were worth. And then the bills, school costs and equipment for the webslinger Peter and Aunt May just didn't make enough. Aunt May needed to be taken care of and Peter just didn't have the money to do what she deserved. And with his masked alter ego, not the time either. Some nephew he turned out to be. He couldn't even care for his own Aunt, after everything she's done for him.

Which brought Peter to the vial in his hand, a gene cleanser, and a cure. One swig of the concoction would end Peter Parker's problems, the end of Spider-man, freedom from his mask and all the deception and pain that came along with it. Maybe it was finally time. To do what all those villains couldn't. Kill the spider.

But, Spider-man did good, he saved lives. All those people tonight, they all lived. Sure, they had scrapes and bruises but they'd all pull through. Peter had put the bad guy away. It wasn't as black and white as that but nonetheless true. What would have happened if Spider-man hadn't been there?

Uncle Ben's voice entered the troubled teen's head. "With great power, comes great responsibility." The words had been an inspiration to him and driven him to be the person he was today. They pushed him to become Spider-man. Peter had received a gift, whether he liked it or not. The spider had been a blessing in disguise. Did he really have the right to take the vial? It might end his troubles but what about the others, the ones who couldn't save themselves from the villains of the Big Apple? The ones he saved as the masked vigilante.

Peter remembers a young boy. He had saved the kid from some falling rubble and helped him reunite with his mother. They cried and thanked him, tears of joy.

That made it all worth it. That was why he is Spider-man. Why he would continue to be Spider-man, he decided. "Spidey stays because he helps. Because he's not a menace, the web-head is a hero. Even when Peter Parker isn't." Peter said to himself as he webbed the vial to the bottom of his desk. "He stays, at least for now."

"Because he's needed."

*Author's Note; So there you have it! Just a short One-shot about Peter reflecting on his decisions. I hope you enjoyed reading it because I certainly enjoyed writing it and having some people read it. Also, if you catch any mistakes, feel free to tell me. :D. Thanks again!


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